emilyreads

Ten Things We Did . . . : Review Haiku

2012-01-27T06:00:00.002-05:00

WOW does she get
teenage invincibility and
dumbass moves right.

Ten Things We Did (And Probably Shouldn't Have) by Lauren Myracle. Harper, 2011, 368 pages.

How to Save a Life: Review Haiku

2012-01-25T06:00:00.003-05:00

Makes the unsympathetic
sympathetic, for both
main characters.

How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr. Little Brown, 2011, 352 pages.

V Is for Vengeance: Review Haiku

2012-01-23T06:00:00.000-05:00

Who cares about the
story? I just want Kinsey's
kickass apartment.

V Is for Vengeance by Sue Grafton. Putnam, 2011, 448 pages.

The Grief of Others: Review Haiku

2012-01-20T06:00:00.002-05:00

Normally love her,
but could not get into this
one. Too depressing?

The Grief of Others by Leah Hager Cohen. Riverhead, 2011, 384 pages.

Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness: Review Haiku

2012-01-18T06:00:00.002-05:00

It's books like this that
make me appreciate my
sainted Swedish mom.

Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness by Alexandra Fuller. Penguin, 2011, 256 pages.

And the Pursuit of Happiness: Review Haiku

2012-01-16T06:00:00.002-05:00

The most beautiful
patriotism I've ever
read.

And the Pursuit of Happiness by Maira Kalman. Penguin, 2010, 480 pages.

Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Not Reading: Review Haiku

2012-01-13T06:00:00.002-05:00

Not as clever as
it thought it was. Try
Wimpy Kid instead, won't you?

Charlie Joe Jackson's Guide to Not Reading by Tommy Greenwald. Roaring Brook, 2011, 224 pages.

Dead End in Norvelt: Review Haiku

2012-01-11T06:00:00.002-05:00

Pretty sure I knew
where this was going, but still
glad I took the trip.

Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos. FSG, 2011, 352 pages.

Toys Come Home: Review Haiku

2012-01-09T06:00:00.002-05:00

Liked but didn't love;
still adore the oddball
collection of friends, though.

Toys Come Home: Being the Early Experiences of an Intelligent Stingray, a Brave Buffalo, and a Brand-New Someone Called Plastic by Emily Jenkins. Schwartz & Wade, 2011, 144 pages.

Resonate: Review Haiku

2012-01-06T06:00:00.002-05:00

Written for business
types, it's what every good
picture-book writer knows.

Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences by Nancy Duarte. John Wiley, 2010, 248 pages.

Mo Wren, Lost and Found: Review Haiku

2012-01-04T06:00:00.002-05:00

Hard-luck Mo struggles
to adjust to new neighborhood,
new friends, new life.

Mo Wren, Lost and Found by Tricia Springstubb. Balzer + Bray, 2011, 256 pages.

Flunking Sainthood: Review Haiku

2012-01-02T06:00:00.003-05:00

Marvelous treatise
on our status as sinners all.
Good thing there's grace.

Flunking Sainthood: A Year of Breaking the Sabbath, Forgetting to Pray, and Still Loving My Neighbor by Jana Riess. Paraclete Press, 2011, 192 pages.

2011 Year in Review (Haiku)

2011-12-30T06:00:00.003-05:00

Number of posts: 148
Number of book reviews: 136

Favorite middle-grade reads:
A Tale Dark and Grimm

Breadcrumbs

The Penderwicks at Point Mouette

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place #2: The Hidden Gallery

Favorite chapter book-y reads:
Clementine and the Family Meeting

Lucky for Good

Favorite YA reads:
The Last Little Blue Envelope

Picture This

Beauty Queens

Withering Tights

Real Live Boyfriends
Why We Broke Up

Favorite grown-up reads:
The Borrower

Bossypants

The Pioneer Woman

One Was a Soldier

Confessions of a Prairie Bitch

Best jackets of the year:
Darth Paper Strikes Back

Divergent

A Tale Dark and Grimm

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Beauty Queens

Okay for Now

Confessions of a Prairie Bitch

Books that, if they do not get some kind of ALA award recognition, I will eat my hat:

Breadcrumbs

Okay for Now

Beauty Queens

A Tale Dark and Grimm

Wonderstruck

FIVE: Birthday Haiku

2011-12-29T11:02:00.001-05:00

Happy birthday to
my Turkey Boy! May you stay
forever insane.

Best American Nonrequired Reading 2011: Review Haiku

2011-12-28T06:00:00.002-05:00

Perfect for dipping
in and out of while on the
beach in Rio (sigh).

Best American Nonrequired Reading edited by Dave Eggers. Mariner, 2011, 528 pages.

Why We Broke Up: Review Haiku

2011-12-26T06:00:00.004-05:00

I think the New York Times

just ji$$ed in its collective pants.
Epic win.

Why We Broke Up by Daniel Handler, illustrated by Maira Kalman. Little Brown, 2011, 368 pages.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T06:00:00.001-05:00

From our house to yours.

Breadcrumbs: Review Haiku

2011-12-23T06:00:00.002-05:00

And another one:

Yes, it really is that good.

My Newbery pick.

Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu. Walden Pond Press, 2011, 320 pages.

A Tale of Two Castles: Review Haiku

2011-12-21T06:00:00.000-05:00

A surfeit of classic
fantasy tropes adds up to
a middling tale.

A Tale of Two Castles by Gail Carson Levine. Harper, 2011, 336 pages.

Alvin Ho #4: Review Haiku

2011-12-19T06:00:00.000-05:00

Surprisingly
touching, yet still wicked funny.
Marry me, Alvin?

Alvin Ho: Allergic to Dead Bodies, Funerals, and Other Fatal Circumstances by Lenore Look. Schwarz & Wade, 2011, 208 pages.

Secrets at Sea: Review Haiku

2011-12-16T06:00:00.001-05:00

Is it sacrilege
to say I thought this was just
okay? Lurve the art.

Secrets at Sea by Richard Peck. Illustrated by Kelly Murphy. Dial, 2011, 256 pages.

The Leftovers: Review Haiku

2011-12-14T06:00:00.001-05:00

"Left Behind for atheists"?
-- probably too flip.
Solid Perrotta.

The Leftovers by Tom Perrotta. St. Martin's, 2011, 368 pages.

Little Bets: Review Haiku

2011-12-12T06:00:00.002-05:00

Nothing shocking, but
a good reminder that
incremental change works.

Little Bets: How Breakthrough Ideas Emerge from Small Discoveries by Peter Sims. Free Press, 2011, 224 pages.

Don't mind me . . .

2011-12-09T06:00:00.000-05:00

. . . I'll just be in Rio for a few days.

Darth Paper Strikes Back: Review Haiku

2011-12-07T06:00:00.002-05:00

Multiple narrators
sometimes grate, but it's
ORIGAMI VADER.

Darth Paper Strikes Back by Tom Angelberger. Amulet, 2011, 176 pages.

The Story of Charlotte's Web: Review Haiku

2011-12-05T06:00:00.003-05:00

A bit precious, a
bit pretentious, but how
could I resist this one?

The Story of Charlotte's Web: E. B. White's Eccentric Life in Nature and the Birth of an American Classic by Michael Sims. Walker, 2011, 320 pages.

St. Paul's Advent Fair: TOMORROW!

2011-12-02T06:00:00.000-05:00

Local peeps, stop by my church's awesome Advent Fair for terrific gift baskets, crafts, food, and a raffle for an iPad2!

Divergent: Review Haiku

2011-11-30T06:00:00.000-05:00

Does the world need more
dystopian YA? Well,
this one kinda rocks.

Divergent by Veronica Roth. Harper, 2011, 496 pages.

Clementine and the Family Meeting: Review Haiku

2011-11-28T06:00:00.000-05:00

Clementine returns!
(I vote for One-Ball Reilly
as a name.)

Clementine and the Family Meeting by Sara Pennypacker. Hyperion, 2011, 176 pages.

This Won't Hurt a Bit: Review Haiku

2011-11-25T06:00:00.003-05:00

The first step in
Medical Memoir Addiction:
admit your problem.

This Won't Hurt a Bit (And Other White Lies): My Education in Medicine and Motherhood by Michelle Au. Grand Central, 2011, 336 pages.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2011-11-24T06:00:00.000-05:00

. . . from my Turkey to yours.

Emmy and the Rats in the Belfry: Review Haiku

2011-11-23T06:00:00.002-05:00

Good rats win, again.
(It's okay that I still find
them revolting, right?)

Emmy and the Rats in the Belfry by Lynne Jonell. Holt, 2011, 384 pages.

Tales for Very Picky Eaters: Review Haiku

2011-11-21T06:00:00.002-05:00

Funny for me? Yes.
Funny for the children? Erm . . .

maybe not so much.

Tales for Very Picky Eaters by Josh Schneider. Clarion, 2011, 48 pages.

The Last Time I Saw You: Review Haiku

2011-11-18T06:00:00.002-05:00

Nostalgia, and could-
have-beens, and surprisingly
honest life lessons.

The Last Time I Saw You by Elizabeth Berg. Ballantine, 2010, 288 pages.

P.S. Annoyingly Unanswered Question: WHY was this their last-ever reunion? HS reunions don't traditionally stop after the 40th, as far as I know. Everybody kept saying, "Oh, it's our last one!" but nobody ever explained why (except, you know, as a Convenient Plot Device, I guess). Irritating.

The Borrower: Review Haiku

2011-11-16T06:00:00.002-05:00

Reluctant kidnapper/
librarian gets in
over her head. FAB.

The Borrower by Rebecca Makkai. Viking, 2011, 336 pages.

Sex on the Moon: Review Haiku

2011-11-14T06:00:00.002-05:00

Too clever by half:
hardscrabble genius loses
everything for love.

Sex on the Moon: The Amazing Story Behind the Most Audacious Heist in History by Ben Mezrich. Doubleday, 2011, 320 pages.

P.S. Hyperbole much, Ben?

Warp Speed: Review Haiku

2011-11-11T06:00:00.000-05:00

Slow to get started,
but ultimately satisfying:
geek makes good.

Warp Speed by Lisa Yee. Levine/Scholastic, 2011, 320 pages.

Bossypants: Review Haiku

2011-11-09T06:00:00.001-05:00

YES, I'm the last person
to read it, and YES, it
really is that good.

Bossypants by Tina Fey. Reagan Arthur Books, 2011, 320 pages.

P.S. Happy birthday to my big sister! I can't imagine why this title made me think of you.

Between Expectations: Review Haiku

2011-11-07T06:00:00.002-05:00

Yes, I AM a sucker
for medical-school memoirs --

why do you ask?

Between Expectations: Lessons from a Pediatric Residency by Meghan Weir, MD. Free Press, 2011, 288 pages.

It Looked Different on the Model: Review Haiku

2011-11-04T06:00:00.002-05:00

Makes me want to both
live next to her, and stay the
hell away from her.

It Looked Different on the Model: Epic Tales of Impending Shame and Infamy by Laurie Notaro. Villard, 2011, 240 pages.

Lucky for Good: Review Haiku

2011-11-02T06:00:00.001-05:00

Careful, brilliant
conclusion to Lucky's Hard Pan
history. Enjoy.

Lucky for Good by Susan Patron. Atheneum, 2011, 224 pages.

P.S. Hate new illos. Haaaaate.

Super Sad True Love Story: Review Haiku

2011-10-31T06:00:00.000-05:00

Could not last thirty
pages in this hipster
douchebag fantasyland.

Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart. Random, 2011, 352 pages.

Knowing Your Value: Review Haiku

2011-10-28T06:00:00.002-05:00

Fairly obvious
platitudes, repeated ad
nauseam, for girls.

Knowing Your Value: Women, Money, and Getting What You're Worth by Mika Brzezinski. Weinstein Books, 2011, 208 pages.

The Summer Before Boys: Review Haiku

2011-10-26T06:00:00.002-05:00

War and loss and love
and friendship, skillfully captured
in one tween girl.

The Summer Before Boys by Nora Raleigh Baskin. S&S, 2011, 208 pages.

The Adults: Review Haiku

2011-10-24T06:00:00.002-05:00

Hated every
character, yet somehow did not
hate the book. Odd, no?

The Adults by Alison Espach. Scribner, 2011, 320 pages.

Lexie: Review Haiku

2011-10-21T06:00:00.004-05:00

Like Junonia, but
with rawer emotions and
more clueless grownups.

Lexie by Audrey Coloumbis. Random, 2011, 208 pages.

Faith: Review Haiku

2011-10-19T06:00:00.002-05:00

The mea culpas
don't come from where you think they
might in this stunner.

Faith by Jennifer Haigh. Harper, 2011, 336 pages.

Going in Circles: Review Haiku

2011-10-17T06:00:00.001-05:00

Roller derby girls

are HOT. That's really all I

have to say on this.

Going in Circles by Pamela Ribon. Downtown Press, 2010, 336 pages.

A Tale Dark and Grimm: Review Haiku

2011-10-14T06:00:00.000-05:00

All the cliches that
shouldn't work, do, in this smart
fairy-tale nightmare.

A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz. Dutton, 2010, 192 pages.

Marty McGuire: Review Haiku

2011-10-12T06:00:00.000-05:00

Tomboy Marty makes
princess play her own in this
charming new series.

Marty McGuire by Kate Messner. Scholastic, 2011, 160 pages.

The Sublime Engine: Review Haiku

2011-10-10T06:00:00.001-05:00

Surprisingly moving
biography of our
most important pump.

The Sublime Engine: A Biography of the Human Heart by Stephen Amidon and Thomas Amidon. Rodale, 2011, 256 pages.

My Life, the Theater, and Other Tragedies: Review Haiku

2011-10-07T06:00:00.003-05:00

High school theater geeks,

unite! This will feel oh so
very familiar.

My Life, the Theater, and Other Tragedies by Allen Zadoff. Egmont, 2011, 288 pages.

Sidekicks: Review Haiku

2011-10-05T06:00:00.002-05:00

Look! Up in the sky!
It's a crime-fighting hamster
and chameleon! Duh.

Sidekicks by Dan Santat. Levine/Scholastic, 2011, 224 pages.

We'll Always Have Summer: Review Haiku

2011-10-03T06:00:00.000-05:00

Love the emotions,
but are there really NO other
guys on Cape Cod?

We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han. S&S, 2011, 304 pages.

Amy and Roger's Epic Detour: Review Haiku

2011-09-30T06:00:00.002-05:00

The best kind of love
story: slow, natural, and
full of cream soda.

Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson. S&S, 2011, 368 pages.

Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters: Review Haiku

2011-09-28T06:00:00.002-05:00

Family drama
has never been quite so much

wicked, heartfelt fun.

Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters by Natalie Standiford. Scholastic, 2010, 320 pages.

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making: Review Haiku

2011-09-26T06:00:00.003-05:00

Equal parts Tollbooth,
Wrinkle, and Oz. Charming, if
self-consciously so.

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente. Feiwel & Friends, 2011, 256 pages.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children: Review Haiku

2011-09-23T06:00:00.002-05:00

Is it normal that
I found the pictures scarier
than the monsters?

Miss Pettigrew's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs. Quirk, 2011, 352 pages.

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer: Review Haiku

2011-09-21T06:00:00.000-05:00

Supernatural

crazy-pants-ness wins with its
charming nonchalance.

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride. Holt, 2010, 352 pages.

The Social Animal: Review Haiku

2011-09-19T06:00:00.000-05:00

Proves Forster's hoary
dictum has ring of truth to
it. Dense but snappy.

The Social Animal: The Hidden Sources of Love, Character, and Achievement by David Brooks. Random, 2011, 448 pages.

Then Came You: Review Haiku

2011-09-16T06:00:00.002-05:00

Weiner's latest had
me sympathetic right until
the end. . . . The hell?

Then Came You by Jennifer Weiner. Atria, 2011, 352 pages.

State of Wonder: Review Haiku

2011-09-14T06:00:00.002-05:00

Rogue researcher sends
Marina into uncharted
territory.

State of Wonder by Ann Patchett. Harper, 2011, 368 pages.

Please Ignore Vera Dietz: Review Haiku

2011-09-12T06:00:00.000-05:00

Label kids "damaged
goods," and they'll behave just like
you expect them to.

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A. S. King. Knopf, 2010, 336 pages.

Shameless: Review Haiku

2011-09-09T06:00:00.002-05:00

Fertility advocate
embraces her hidden
sex-goddess self.

Shameless: How I Ditched the Diet, Got Naked, Found True Pleasure . . . And Somehow Got Home in Time to Cook Dinner by Pamela Madsen. Rodale, 2011, 288 pages.

Best Staged Plans: Review Haiku

2011-09-07T06:00:00.002-05:00

The importance of
keeping up appearances,
in work and in love.

Best Staged Plans by Claire Cook. Hyperion, 2011, 256 pages.

Delivering Happiness: Review Haiku

2011-09-05T06:00:00.002-05:00

Rah-rah memoir from
a Young-Turk CEO who
got lucky with shoes.

Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose by Tony Hsieh. Business Plus, 2010, 253 pages.

Dumpling Days: Review Haiku

2011-09-02T06:00:00.000-05:00

The Lins go to Taiwan,
and Pacy learns about
dual identities.

Dumpling Days by Grace Lin. Little Brown, 2012, 246 pages. (Sorry, no image or URL available online yet!)

Every Last One: Review Haiku

2011-08-31T06:00:00.002-05:00

Brutal tragedy
and the thousand small betrayals
that presaged it.

Every Last One by Anna Quindlen. Random, 2010, 320 pages.

Sex, Murder, and the Meaning of Life: Review Haiku

2011-08-29T06:00:00.002-05:00

Debunks "lizard brain"
idea, but not as clever
as he thinks he is.

Sex, Murder, and the Meaning of Life: A Psychologist Investigates How Evolution, Cognition, and Complexity Are Revolutionizing Our View of Human Nature by Douglas T. Kenrick. Basic Books, 2011, 256 pages.

Crazy U: Review Haiku

2011-08-26T06:00:00.002-05:00

Hapless dad tackles
college admissions while
trying not to succumb.

Crazy U: One Dad's Crash Course in Getting His Kid Into College by Andrew Ferguson. S&S, 2011, 240 pages.

Awkward Family Photos: Review Haiku

2011-08-24T06:00:00.002-05:00

And I thought that pic
of me in pegged jeans and a
black beret was bad.

Awkward Family Photos by Doug Chernak and Mike Bender. Three Rivers Press, 2010, 192 pages.

What Happened to Goodbye: Review Haiku

2011-08-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

Mom's betrayal means
Mclean lets no one in --

until, at last, she does.

What Happened to Goodbye by Sarah Dessen. Viking, 2011, 402 pages.

How I Killed Pluto: Review Haiku

2011-08-19T06:00:00.002-05:00

Astronomy has
never been so entertaining,
so cut-throat.

How I Killed Pluto (And Why It Had It Coming) by Mike Brown. Spiegel & Grau, 2010, 288 pages.

The Cookbook Collector: Review Haiku

2011-08-17T06:00:00.000-05:00

Tech-bubble tycoon
and eco-scholar sister
navigate love, loss.

The Cookbook Collector by Allegra Goodman. Dial, 2011, 432 pages.

Thirteen Reasons Why: Review Haiku

2011-08-15T06:00:00.002-05:00

Searing, yet oddly
hopeful look at how we fail
those who need us most.

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher. Razorbill, 2007, 304 pages.

Wonderstruck: Review Haiku

2011-08-12T06:00:00.002-05:00

A fitting HUGO
follow-up: creativity
and family.

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick. Scholastic, 2011, 608 pages.

Smokin' Seventeen: Review Haiku

2011-08-10T06:00:00.001-05:00

Oh, Stephanie. You
claim a cursed sex drive, but you're
quickly turning skank.

Smokin' Seventeen by Janet Evanovich. Bantam, 2011, 320 pages.

Around the World: Review Haiku

2011-08-08T06:00:00.000-05:00

Three adventurers
circumnavigate under
Phelan's trusty pen.

Around the World by Matt Phelan. Candlewick, 2011, 240 pages.

Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Review Haiku

2011-08-05T06:00:00.000-05:00

Why millennial
feminists go Gaga for
Disney prosti-tots.

Cinderella Ate My Daughter: Dispatches from the Front Lines of the New Girlie-Girl Culture by Peggy Orenstein. Harper, 2011, 256 pages.

Spoiled: Review Haiku

2011-08-03T06:00:00.000-05:00

The Fug Girls do YA,
to bitchy-keen effect.
Well played, as they say.

Spoiled by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan. Poppy, 2011, 368 pages.

Swimming in the Steno Pool: Review Haiku

2011-08-01T06:00:00.000-05:00

Packaged like chick lit;
dry like academia.
Caveat reader.

Swimming in the Steno Pool: A Retro Guide to Making It in the Office by Lynn Peril. Norton, 2011, 291 pages.

Can't post. Reading.

2011-07-01T06:00:00.000-05:00

As I did last year, I'm going to take a brief summer hiatus and catch up on some excellent reading, beach and otherwise. See you in August.

[Image found on The Book Lady's Blog]

Swim the Fly: Review Haiku

2011-06-29T06:00:00.000-05:00

Teenage boys in all
their horny, lying, dumbass,
endearing glory.

Swim the Fly by Don Calame. Candlewick, 2009, 352 pages.

The Penderwicks at Point Mouette: Review Haiku

2011-06-27T06:00:00.002-05:00

And again I say,
why am I not a Penderwick?
Maine-ly awesome.

The Penderwicks at Point Mouette by Jeanne Birdsall. Knopf, 2011, 304 pages.

The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party: Review Haiku

2011-06-24T06:00:00.000-05:00

Maimed cattle, illegitimate
twins, new shoes, and --
at last! -- a wedding.

The Saturday Big Tent Wedding Party by Alexander McCall Smith. Pantheon, 2011, 213 pages.

The Art of Immersion: Review Haiku

2011-06-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

Takes a while to get
there, but a nifty look at
storytelling now.

The Art of Immersion: How the Digital Generation Is Remaking Hollywood, Madison Avenue, and the Way We Tell Stories by Frank Rose. Norton, 2011, 354 pages.

The Last Little Blue Envelope: Review Haiku

2011-06-20T06:00:00.002-05:00

MJ gets it right:

love, death, longing, heartbreak --
plus the best car EVAH.

The Last Little Blue Envelope by Maureen Johnson. Harper, 2011, 288 pages.

Sweet Valley Confidential: Review Haiku

2011-06-17T06:00:00.000-05:00

Their wedding procession
song was from Phantom of
the Opera?!? *dies*

Sweet Valley Confidential: Ten Years Later by Francine Pascal. St. Martin's, 2011, 293 pages.

Squish: Review Haiku

2011-06-15T06:00:00.000-05:00

Is there nothing the
Holm kids can't do? Fun new series
for squishy boys.

Squish #1: Super Amoeba by Jennifer L. Holm and Matt Holm. Random, 2011, 96 pages.

Beginner's Grace: Review Haiku

2011-06-13T06:00:00.000-05:00

A primer on prayer
right when I needed it.
Reverend Kate speaks the truth.

Beginner's Grace: Bringing Prayer to Life by Kate Braestrup. Free Press, 2010, 272 pages.

The Pioneer Woman: Review Haiku

2011-06-10T06:00:00.000-05:00

Couldn't get enough
of this real-life love story.
Cowboys are sexy.

The Pioneer Woman: Black Heels to Tractor Wheels: A Love Story by Ree Drummond. Morrow, 2011, 352 pages.

The Wilder Life: Review Haiku

2011-06-08T06:00:00.001-05:00

Poundy lets her
prairie freak flag fly: A road trip
for budding Half-Pints.

The Wilder Life: My Adventures in the Lost World of Little House on the Prairie by Wendy McClure. Riverhead, 2011, 352 pages.

Trouble Maker 2: Review Haiku

2011-06-06T06:00:00.003-05:00

Well, that was a waste
of a good half an hour

of my life. Piffle.

Trouble Maker, Book 2 by Janet Evanovich and Alex Evanovich. Dark Horse, 2010, 112 pages.

The Trouble with May Amelia: Review Haiku

2011-06-03T06:00:00.000-05:00

I'm starting a line
to punch May Amelia's father
right in the mouth.

The Trouble with May Amelia by Jennifer L. Holm. Atheneum, 2011, 224 pages.

Five Very Good Reasons to Punch a Dolphin in the Mouth: Review Haiku

2011-06-01T06:00:00.004-05:00

Let's Panic About Babies: Review Haiku

2011-05-30T06:00:00.001-05:00

Fussy and Finslippy
don't know nothin' about
birthin' no babies.

Let's Panic About Babies!: How to Endure and Possibly Triumph Over the Adorable Tyrant Who Will Ruin Your Body, Destroy Your Life, Liquefy Your Brain, and Finally Turn You into a Worthwhile Human Being by Alice Bradley and Eden Kennedy. St. Martin's, 2011, 272 pages.

Unfamiliar Fishes: Review Haiku

2011-05-27T06:00:00.000-05:00

Vowell spins the twisted
tale of Hawaii -- but dear God,
why no chapters?

Unfamiliar Fishes by Sarah Vowell. Riverhead, 2011, 256 pages.

Verily, Verily: Review Haiku

2011-05-25T06:00:00.000-05:00

Not for scholars: a
mish-mash of KJV things
the author finds cool.

Verily, Verily: The King James Version: 400 Years of Influence and Beauty by Jon Sweeney. Zondervan, 2011, 224 pages.

One Was a Soldier: Review Haiku

2011-05-23T06:00:00.003-05:00

Brutal, honest, grace-filled
repercussions of war.
And oh! -- a wedding!

One Was a Soldier by Julia Spencer-Fleming. St. Martin's, 2011, 336 pages.

P.S. Bonus points for swiping the title from arguably the most delightfully ridiculous Episcopal hymn of all time.

Happy Birthday to Me

2011-05-20T05:58:00.000-05:00

Today is my birthday. And instead of having a night of wanton debauchery and certain humiliation, I am doing this, with fourteen of my closest b-school friends. The older I get, the more insane I get.